The Tallahassee police investigated Winston, a leading Heisman Trophy contender, in connection with a sexual assault in an off-campus apartment that was reported nearly a year ago. F.S.U. records showed the first report was made to the campus police on Dec. 7 by a student at a dormitory. The investigation was handed over to the Tallahassee police, and the case was given to prosecutors this week.

Georgia Cappleman, an assistant state attorney, said normal procedure for criminal cases in Leon County calls for the police to give information to prosecutors if there is evidence for an arrest, or if it is a “close call.” She said the police do not tell prosecutors when they have decided against pursuing an arrest.

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The authorities and Florida State have said little about a sexual assault inquiry involving the star quarterback Jameis Winston.CreditStreeter Lecka/Getty Images

The Tallahassee police, citing a continuing investigation, have not said much about the case, including why investigators waited until this week to hand over information to local prosecutors.

Second-ranked Florida State practiced Thursday, preparing for a home game against Syracuse on Saturday. Winston spoke to the news media for roughly five minutes Wednesday night, but university officials said they would cut off the news conference if anyone asked questions that were not strictly related to football.

Timothy Jansen, the lawyer representing Winston, has said that his client did nothing wrong and that he thought the investigation had been completed months ago. “When I spoke to the detective in February, he told me the case was closed,” Jansen said. “I relayed that to my client and to university officials. I hadn’t heard another word until Monday.”

The Tallahassee police on Wednesday released a heavily redacted two-page incident report that did not mention Winston by name, but said the incident took place between 1:30 and 2 a.m. on Dec. 7. It described the suspect’s height as being between 5 feet 9 inches and 5-11. Winston is listed at 6-4 by Florida State.

Coach Jimbo Fisher held a live radio show in Tallahassee on Wednesday evening and did not address the incident or the investigation.

A version of this article appears in print on , Section B, Page 16 of the New York edition with the headline: Long Delay in Case of F.S.U. Star. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe